Washington D.C., Sep 6, 2013 / 16:05 pm
A ranking member of the U.S. House has proposed a war crimes tribunal as an alternative to military intervention in Syria so that perpetrators can be held accountable for the use of chemical weapons.
"There is a compelling, moral imperative to immediately establish a comprehensive way to hold accountable all those on either side, including Assad, who have slaughtered and raped in Syria," Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) affirmed in a Sept. 5 statement.
Smith offered the plan as a way to enforce international standards prohibiting the use of chemical weapons while avoiding an escalation of violence in the war-torn country.
He suggested that a Syrian War Crimes Tribunal established through the United Nations would be "a nonlethal alternative to missiles and bombs that carry huge risks of killing or maiming innocent civilians and exacerbating the conflict-all while putting American servicemembers at risk."